Not So Innocent
by Choices Accepted
Summary: Sam makes a different decision when they go to rescue Josh. My alternate version of the ending.


Disclaimer: I don't own the game. Just the wonderful imagination it leaves me with.

XxX

Mike raised his hand to slap Josh but was stopped by Sam's own hand grabbing his wrist.

"Don't hit him. He doesn't like that," Sam said as explanation.

"Then what am I supposed to do? He's gone deep in it," Mike said as he watched Josh mumble to himself.

Sam walked up to Josh and placed her hands on both sides of his head.

"Josh? Sweetie, come back to me. Follow my voice, I'm here now." Sam watched as Josh's eyes began to focus on her.

"Sammy?" he whispered.

"Yea Sweetie it's me."

Josh lowered his head until it rested on her shoulder while his arms came up and wrapped around her waist. Sam stroked his head and hummed a tune, rubbing soothing circles on his back. Mike raised a brow at the out of place affection but figured Sam had calmed him down like this before and decided to take a look around to find a way out of the mines.

A distant screech broke the two apart and Sam smiled at Josh before grabbing his hand and turning to Mike.

"Any way we could make it out of here besides going back?" she asked.

With another look around Mike saw a large hole above them leading out of the mines and along the cliff wall some random handholds. Turning to the two, he assessed Josh's condition and shook his head.

"You and I can climb out through that hole up there but Josh does not seem to be in any shape to try it," he replied.

"Please Sammy don't leave me," Josh whimpered, holding her hand tighter.

Sam looked from the opening above then to Josh and agreed with Mike. Scratches and bruises littered his whole body and his eyes were still a bit wild and somewhat out of focus. She also didn't know if he would have another attack as they attempted to climb up.

"Yea you're right," Sam said, "It would be easier if you went up and waited for help to arrive and led them here instead. Josh and I can find a safe area to huddle into and not move."

Mike looked at her incredulously.

"Are you serious? Those things might come here and find you guys. You can climb up and I can lead Josh out of here. I've got an almost fully loaded gun; we can make a way out of here."

"NOT going to happen. Those wendigoes are unpredictable and we were lucky so far not to run into any of them on our way here. We just heard one of their screams not even a minute ago so they could have already sensed us by now. That stranger's book said the Wendigoes rely on movement and sound so we can find an area to hide and not move until after day break."

Thoughts ran around in Mike's head as he saw the determined look in Sam's eyes and the pleading one in Josh's. The older male then shuffled closer to Sam as though Mike was going to snatch her away from him.

Coming to a decision, Mike released a sigh and nodded. "Alright fine, but I'm at least helping you find a spot to hide in case we have to come down here."

The only place that was remotely hide-able was near a pile of bones and a large rock. Their only hope was that the creatures would know this area would not inhabit a living thing and leave it alone. Josh curled into Sam once they got semi comfortable and Mike began his trek up and out.

As the crunch of snow faded away under Mike's footsteps, Josh finally lifted his head to peer into Sam's eyes.

"I'm sorry Sam," he whispered then hid his face back into her neck.

Her eyes softened at his sincere tone.

"It's going to be okay Josh. Nothing went according to plan tonight, but at least some of them suffered. A small tribute to Hannah and Beth but one all the same." She tightened her arms around him as she prepared to explain more.

"One of those wendigo creatures is Hannah, Josh. She…she ate Beth in an attempt to survive, none of those bastard officers or forest rangers supposedly saw her down here if they even tried at all."

Anger filled the both of them at the thought.

Josh wanted to scream and cry, one of his dear sisters was alive and no one had found her before she had to resort to the unthinkable. He should have persisted more to come and help instead of accepting the denial by those same rangers that he would only be a liability. At first he had felt bad for what he had done, especially to Chris, but now his only regret was that he had involved Sam even if it was at her own insistence.

Sam was also thinking as she was sure Josh was processing the information. The Washingtion's had been her family since becoming Hannah and Beth's friend in grade school. When she couldn't deal with the fighting and screaming at home she ran to her friends and was accepted with open arms. Now it was her turn to be accepting, no matter what Hannah had become.

"I still love Hannah, no matter what," she commented, aware of a shadowy figure peering down from over the rock.

There wasn't even a hesitant pause from Josh. "No matter what."

Happy with his response, Sam tilted her head and gave him a kiss on the corner of his mouth. They were both silent for a while longer, attempting to keep still even as cold shivers racked their bodies.

"C…could we try again? Could we get them and the rangers like we tried tonight?" Josh asked, his voice muffled by her neck as he didn't want to move from the only safe haven he had.

A sinister grin pulled at the corner of Sam's mouth as she stared into the milky white eyes of a friend she would know no matter how mutated and deformed she became. Madness and hunger were dominant in those orbs but there was something else, a type of recognition when Sam had said her name.

"I have an even better idea."

*-*-End-*-*

 **Note:** So here's my alternate version of the ending. I was watching as Sam was telling the police to go into the mines and this baby was born. I'm not overly satisfied with it and if I'm inspired to write more or touch it up I might but I wanted to post it before the tiny wendigo muse ate the rest of my brain.

Thanks for reading (0_0)~


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